The Life of a Returned Genius Farmer - Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Receiving a Token – Part 2

[Translation By Divinity]

It had been a long time since he last held a sword. Before returning from the tower, he’d had it by his side almost like a necessity. Lee Han gazed at the holy sword for a moment, then shook his head.

After returning from the tower, he thought he would never touch a sword again. But here he was, holding one.

“I will use it well.”

“Yes, I have no doubt. Then we shall take our leave.”

It seemed the undead around them had been cleared. Normally, they would stay for a few more days, gathering sweet radishes, honey sweet potatoes, and other things to take back. But perhaps because Lee Han had brought so much this time, they wanted to return immediately.

“Shredder, see you later.”

“Farewell.”

The elves casually waved to Shredder, who waved back leisurely, and disappeared towards the outskirts of the Great Forest. Shredder watched them go, then lightly patted Lee Han’s back.

“What are you thinking so deeply about?”

“I’m surprised that there are no humans in this world. What could have happened?”

“Well, I’ve investigated this and that as a historian, but I haven’t been able to find a clear answer.”

‘Something must have happened. I wonder what it was.’

Questions arose in his mind. While Lee Han remained silent, lost in thought with a serious expression, Shredder stretched lightly.

“Anyway, it seems like you got the seasonings and spices. What can you make with them?”

“Nya nya! Can we look forward to it, nya?!”

Lee Han examined the pouches containing the spices and smiled. It was surprising that there were no humans, but it wasn’t something he could do anything about right now. So it was better to focus on the task at hand.

“Let’s go and see.”

He thought about what kind of dish he could make with pepper, red pepper powder, Elvenstock, and rock salt. If he used Elvenstock like chicken stock…

“Spicy fish stew, of course.”

Lee Han cleaned the trout he had taken from the fish trap. He sliced the sweet radishes thinly and put them in the iron pot along with red pepper powder and Elvenstock.

“Nyaang! Will this be enough, nya?”

Seolmyeong, who had found and brought garlic fruit from the forest—a fruit that tasted similar to garlic on Earth—asked.

Lee Han nodded, minced the garlic fruit, and added it to the pot. Then, he put the cleaned trout into the iron pot and started to boil it.

“Will it turn out well?”

With Elvenstock, it should be fine, but he was still curious about the outcome. Considering the effect of the iron pot, he thought it would probably turn out to be a decent dish, and a while later…

[Delicious Spicy Trout Stew]

[Spicy stew made with red trout. Its spicy flavor is exceptional.]

[Delicious effect: Increases all stats for one day upon consumption.]

[Delicious effect: Increases all skill levels for one day upon consumption.]

[Provides a warming effect upon consumption.]

[Increases Stamina upon consumption.]

[Crafting Difficulty: ☆☆☆]

“Oh.”

A dish with the ‘Delicious’ option was complete. Shredder and Seolmyeong, seeing the spicy trout stew bubbling in the pot, sparkled their eyes and looked at the bowls.

“Give it to me quickly, nya!”

“This looks mouthwatering!”

“Be careful, it’s hot.”

Lee Han served them the spicy trout stew in bowls. Receiving the bowls filled with thinly sliced sweet radishes and plenty of trout, they started eating the stew frantically.

“It’s delicious, nya! The spiciness is amazing!”

As if to prove the saying ‘cat’s tongue’ wrong, Seolmyeong started eating the spicy stew so enthusiastically that its white fur turned red.

Shredder was no different. He skillfully used chopsticks to remove the trout meat, dipped it in the red broth, and put it in his mouth in one bite.

“Whoa! It’s delicious! It’s so delicious! Hoo! Ha! Hoo! Ha! It’s hot, but it’s delicious! I can’t stop eating!”

“Don’t make such a fuss.”

Satisfied with their reactions, Lee Han also took a sip of the spicy trout stew broth. The spicy taste flowing down his throat relieved the tension in his whole body.

“It’s a shame. It would be perfect if we had rice.”

Or maybe noodles.

While Lee Han was feeling a bit of regret, the two who had finished their bowls of spicy trout stew held them out.

“More, nya!!”

“Give me more sweet radishes! The sweet radishes are really delicious!”

Both of them seemed to really like the stew. Lee Han smiled at them and served them more spicy trout stew.

Thus, lunch ended without much conversation, focusing solely on the food, and everyone sprawled out, feeling full.

“It was delicious, nyaa~.”

“Indeed. Wow, this is the first time I’ve had such a delicious soup dish.”

“I have one regret. First, it would’ve been even better if we had noodles…”

Lee Han muttered to himself, thinking that spring onions and crown daisy would have made it even better. Shredder’s eyes lit up at his words.

“That’s not all?! This is exciting! How do you make those noodles?”

“It’s impossible until we grow wheat.”

After all, he needed flour to make noodles or anything else. Lee Han pointed to the bag he had received earlier.

“Wheat farming… That sounds promising. Or should I bring you some wild wheat if I find any?”

“That wouldn’t be bad either. But making flour is also a lot of work…”

He couldn’t be pounding wheat into flour every time he needed it. Lee Han glanced at the river and thought to himself.

‘Could I use that water to make a watermill?’

He knew how to make a watermill. He decided to try making one later using the Crafting skill.

While Lee Han was contemplating his future plans, Seolmyeong, with remnants of the red broth around its mouth, trotted towards the water. It dipped its body a few times in the water from the purification jar, cleaning the stains from its white fur, and then spoke as it emerged.

“Have you decided where to plant the wheat, nya?”

“Not yet. I haven’t found a suitable place.”

He thought it would be better to look for a place upstream or downstream. Seeing Lee Han’s contemplation, Shredder snapped his fingers and pointed downstream.

“There’s a plain down there. How about farming there?”

“Is it within walking distance from the base?”

“It’s not too far. Want to go check it out?”

“Let’s go.”

Guided by Shredder, Lee Han and Seolmyeong headed downstream. As he had said, there was a fairly large plain not too far away. The soil wasn’t bad either; it seemed suitable for wheat farming.

“Alright. Let’s farm here then.”

“Nya nya! Let’s do it, nya!”

“Phew~. I guess I’ve paid for my meal by introducing this place. Do you need anything else?”

“I’d like you to bring me some seeds of edible plants.”

“Hmm. Sure, why not. Then I’ll come back next week.”

“Okay. Thanks for today.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Shredder grinned and walked away leisurely. Lee Han watched him go, then returned to the base with Seolmyeong and looked at the holy sword.

“What’s wrong, nya?”

“Nothing. Just reminiscing about old times.”

Lee Han placed the holy sword in a corner and started taking care of the remaining tasks. He needed to collect sprouts from the sweet potatoes to plant them again and germinate the sweet radish seeds.

While he was working, he heard a familiar voice from afar.

“Lee Han! Are you there?!”

It was Barganthus. The young man ran up, panting, and sat down. Lee Han offered him some water.

“Why are you running so fast? What’s going on?”

“We’re having a festival in our village! I came to invite you! Can you come?!”

A festival? Lee Han looked at Barganthus, puzzled.

Barganthus explained that the hunters who had gone on a long hunt had returned.

“You must have had a hard time hunting so far away.”

“We needed a lot of magic stones, but there weren’t many monsters nearby!”

“Magic stones? Why?”

“We were running out of food!!”

Lee Han was surprised to hear that they consumed magic stones obtained from hunting monsters, and Seolmyeong casually explained.

“Beastfolk consume magic stones to increase their strength and mana, nya! That’s why beastfolk are all excellent monster hunters, nya!”

“Oh, I see.”

“They also share things they get from hunting monsters or rare herbs and fruits they gather in the process! If you need anything, why don’t you come and get it?!”

Rare fruits and herbs didn’t sound bad. Lee Han nodded and stopped his work.

“It’s not good to go empty-handed… I should bring some bowls.”

He took out the beastfolk bowls he had made in his spare time, and Barganthus’s face brightened. Many in the minotaur beastfolk village wanted the bowls Lee Han had made. Considering that, the bowls Lee Han was giving would be a great gift for the minotaur beastfolk village holding the festival.

“Everyone will love them!!”

“Then let’s go.”

Lee Han put the bowls on the cart and climbed on, and Barganthus grabbed the handle. They quickly arrived at the minotaur beastfolk village, which was even more bustling than the last time he visited.

“Human! You came?!”

“What are those bowls?!”

“They’re gifts.”

“You didn’t have to bring anything! Why did you bring all this?!”

“Haha. I couldn’t come empty-handed to a festival.”

Lee Han smiled and handed over the bowls on the cart. While everyone who received them was delighted, Longbiart approached with a smile.

“My, my. Thank you for bringing such precious gifts. I was just thinking of giving you something you’d like as a gift, as they said they’d brought back things you might enjoy.”

“Haha. Thank you.”

“Follow me.”

Following Longbiart, they arrived at the place where the kiln used to be. There were large stones piled up, which he hadn’t seen before.

“What are those?”

“These are stones that the hunters found on their recent trip. They say these stones can withstand even the flames of a hydra.”

“Hydra’s flames can melt even iron, nya! There are stones that can withstand that, nya?!”

It seemed that even Seolmyeong didn’t know about this. Lee Han also looked at the stones with curiosity. They didn’t look particularly special, but he figured the minotaur beastfolk wouldn’t lie, so he smiled and nodded.

“The kiln was about to collapse anyway, so I can build a new one with these. Maybe I can even make iron equipment.”

“We know where to get some iron ore, though it’s not much. So, once you build a kiln with those stones, make some iron equipment for us.”

“Haha… I’m not sure if I can make them well, though.”

He had worked as a blacksmith to help out when he was in the tower, so it shouldn’t be a problem. Lee Han spoke as if it wasn’t a big deal, and meanwhile, the sound of singing started to fill the air, indicating the festival had begun.

“Oh my. The festival has already started. Let’s go quickly.”

“Yes.”

Following Longbiart to the center of the village, Lee Han saw the minotaur beastfolk dancing and singing with piles of unfamiliar herbs and fruits. Everyone seemed quite excited. Watching them, Lee Han tilted his head.

“The children still look thin.”

“Hmm… I’m worried. We’re trying to feed them a lot during the festival, but I’m not sure if they’ll eat well.”

“How about trying to feed them some rice porridge?”

Rice porridge was nutritious enough to make even cows gain weight during winter. Recalling the memory of his neighbor’s old man feeding rice porridge to his picky cows on Earth, Lee Han suggested it, and Longbiart tilted his head.

“What’s that?”